Increased reservoir for fluid container

ABSTRACT

A container for storing a fluid incorporates an overflow region. The overflow region is located above the desired fill line of the container and preferably terminates in the same plane as the opening of the fill spout. In this manner, the amount of fluid filled in the container can be maximized while still providing the desired air space for shipping purposes. Incorporating structural features into the body of the blow-molded container eliminate the use of external cases.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

This application hereby incorporates by reference the following chain ofapplications/patents and claims the priority benefit of as acontinuation-in-part application of application Ser. No. 10/264,305,filed Oct. 3, 2002, which is a continuation of application Ser. No.09/472,138, filed Dec. 23, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. ______, which is adivisional of application Ser. No. 09/114,244, filed Jun. 29, 1998, nowU.S. Pat. No. 6,068,161, which claims benefit of provisional applicationSer. No. 60/052,775, filed Jul. 1, 1997.

The present invention relates generally to receptacles and containers,and particularly relates to a caseless dispenser container used fortransporting, storing, and dispensing fluids. The invention findsparticularly particular application with fluids introduced or subjectedto elevated temperatures relative to the filling temperature of thefluid into the container, such as cooking oil or similar comestibleproducts, although it may also find application with non-comestiblefluid products.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,050,455; 6,068,161; and 6,247,507 are commonly owned bythe assignee of the present application. These patents relate generallyand specifically to the concept of thin-walled containers, and thedisclosures of each are hereby expressly incorporated herein. Forexample, thin-walled containers which are defined as having a ratio ofplastic resin required to manufacture the container relative to theamount of product capable of being transported in the container. Atypical thin-walled container of this type has a weight-to-volume ratioof approximately 55 to 70 grams per gallon (approximately 18 to 24 gramsper liter).

In shipping and storing bulk fluid products, plastic molded containersare commonly used and are blow-molded, one-piece containers. Thesecontainers are usually stored or shipped in a separate case thatreceives individual containers or may enclose multiple containers suchas a set of four (4) to six (6) containers. These cases adopt variousdifferent configurations or conformations such as wire or plastic cases,corrugated paper boxes, or other corrugated materials, which providedesired structural support to the individual containers during shipping.For example, and as shown in FIG. 1, a blow-molded plastic container isreceived in a corrugated box for storage, shipment, and handling. Sincethe corrugated case is intended to carry or receive the structural loador bearing forces (on the order of ______ force-lbs) during storage andshipment, little design effort has heretofore been undertaken to addressstructural concerns of a container without the use of separate cases,i.e., caseless shipping containers.

Another common use for containers in cases is to store and ship cookingoil. Historically, and as briefly noted above, these containers are usedin conjunction with a corrugated or cardboard case so that verticalloading of one container to the other is transferred through the cases.As will be appreciated, part of the manufacturing/total cost of theshipping assembly is associated with the corrugated case. The use of thecase allows less resin to be used in the plastic container, although thedesign of the assembly (container and associated case) is intended totransfer structural forces via the corrugated material and not thecontainer.

These known arrangements encounter a number of problems, for example,stacking height of one container on top of another is limited. Long,unbraced lengths are encountered. In addition, if the corrugatedmaterial becomes wet, e.g., if a container leaks or moisture from theenvironment permeates the corrugated case, the structural strength andintegrity of the corrugated case can become a serious problem. There arealso potential food storage issues associated with any leakage of oil.

Still another issue with a container and case assembly used in storingand shipping cooking oil, for example, is that the oil is typicallyfilled at a temperature above ambient, on the order of approximately onehundred degrees Fahrenheit (100° F.). Oil is less dense at the elevatedtemperature. The containers are usually filled to the base of the neckand then over time and as the oil cools, the fill level decreases. Thisresults in a large air gap in prior art containers. In order to ship adesired amount of oil when it is filled at an elevated temperature, thevendor must use a container of increased height to accommodate thisphenomenon.

Once the container is filled, it is sealed with a cap, such as ascrew-on or threaded cap. Typically, a lesser quality, less expensivemodel is used since some of the cost in the prior art arrangements isdirected to supplying the corrugated case. If the sealed container isexposed to an increase in temperature, for example on the order of onehundred ten degrees (110° F.) while sitting in a truck in a hotenvironment, the increase in internal pressure could cause the lesserquality cap to leak. As will be appreciated, this only exacerbates thesituation of contaminated product, as well as moisture problems anddecreased strength associated with the prior art corrugated case andcontainer assembly.

Accordingly, a need exists to provide a container, preferably a caselesscontainer that resolves these problems and others in an inexpensive,efficient, and reliable manner.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF INVENTION

A new and improved container for storing fluid, particularly a fluidfilled at an elevated temperature, and a method of forming same isprovided.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the container includes agenerally parallelepiped structure having a fill/dispensing spoutthrough one wall thereof. The spout extends above a desired fill levelwith an opening that terminates in a first plane. An overflow region isprovided that terminates in a wall portion in the first surface that isdisposed between the fill level and first plane to accommodate a desiredair space in the container.

Preferably, a wall portion defining the overflow region terminatessubstantially in the same plane as the opening through the spout.

A handle is preferably interposed between the opening and the wallportion of the overflow region. In one embodiment, the handle extends atan angle from beneath a base portion of the spout to the wall portion ofthe overflow region.

With large volume containers that may hold three (3) to five (5) gallonsof a fluid, product may be stored in caseless containers. A number ofstructural load elements, which in the preferred arrangement are ribelements, are used to add structural rigidity to the container. Thelarger containers may be stacked in a brick-like fashion.

Preferably, the ribs are oriented generally perpendicular to theelongated dimension of the container to serve the useful purpose oftransferring forces from an upper layer to a lower layer of containerswhen the containers are oriented in a stacked array on their sides.

An advantage of the present invention resides in the ability of thecontainer to accommodate fluid filled at an elevated temperature.

Still another advantage is found in the elimination of cases forshipping.

Yet another advantage is found in improved sealing of the spout.

Still other advantages and benefits of the present invention will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding thefollowing detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a prior art container stored in acorrugated case.

FIGS. 2-6 are elevational, right side, left side, top, and bottom planviews of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is an elevational view of another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 8 is a representation of multiple containers stacked in accordancewith the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, and with reference to FIG. 1, a prior art arrangement of athin-walled bottle or container 20 is shown in a corrugated case 22. Thecontainer includes a fluid spout 24 having a cap 26 intended to seal afluid spout opening (not shown). The spout in this embodiment isintended to be used for both filling and dispensing, and thus isgenerally a wide-mouthed opening to facilitate the amount of fluid thatis filled or dispensed from the container. Cutouts 28 are provided in anupper surface of the corrugated case 22 to form a handle for lifting andtransport of the combined case and container assembly. Again, thisassembly is a conventional arrangement and illustrates how some bulkfluids, such as cooking oil or the like, are stored and shipped throughcommerce.

FIGS. 2-6 illustrate a preferred container 30 for storing fluids inaccordance with the present invention, and in this particular instanceillustrates a caseless container that solves a particular need withregard to a fluid filled in the container at an elevated temperature.The bottle or container 30 is preferably a one-piece, blow-moldedplastic construction which has a generally parallelepiped wall structure32 integrally formed in the blow-molding process and having a fluidspout 34 and integral handle 36 formed therein. The container is ahollow structure forming an internal cavity that is dimensioned toreceive a predetermined quantity of fluid therein, for example, two orfive gallon containers, although other sizes are also contemplatedwithout departing from the scope and intent of the present invention.Dairy products, juices, cooking oil, and other comestible fluidproducts, or powder or liquid detergents may be stored therein. Thus,continued reference to the particular application of this structure forcooking oil should not be deemed limiting, even though the containerdescribed herein serves the particular needs required in that industry.

The wall structure includes a strengthening component such as a seriesof integrally formed ribs or grooves 40 that provide additionalstructural strength or rigidity to the container. As shown, thestrengthening features 40 are illustrated as extending around the entireperiphery of the container and are disposed in generally parallelrelation to a first or upper surface 42 and a second or lower surface44. Although it will be appreciated that the strengthening features 40are peripherally continuous in the illustrated embodiment, relateddesigns that alter the cross-section of these ribs in order to attainincreased rigidity or strength can be used without departing from thepresent invention.

The lower surface 44 includes a recess 50 that is primarily intended forease of handling when the contents of the fluid container are pouredfrom the spout. As will be further appreciated, a user grasps thecontainer by the handle 36 with one hand and can tip or manipulate thecontainer by placing the fingers of the other hand into the recess 50 onthe lower surface. The contents can then be poured from the container ina controlled fashion. It will also be appreciated that opening 52 isprovided to form/delineate the handle from the remainder of thecontainer and allows the container to be lifted with a single hand. Ifthe lateral width of the handle is increased, it may not be necessary toprovide a through opening cooking oil, and instead recesses extendinginwardly from either side may be sufficient. The handle is preferablycentrally located between parallel sidewall portions 32 a, 32 b (FIGS. 3and 5) and is also approximately disposed midway between front and rearwall portions 32 c and 32 d (FIGS. 2 and 5). This advantageously locatesthe handle behind the spout 34, which is located forwardly on asubstantially planar portion 54 forming an upper surface of the wallstructure of the container. In the preferred embodiment, the handle 36integrally merges at one end 36 a to provide a smooth transition withthe upper surface portion 54 and at a second end 36 b merges with anoverflow reservoir region 60 the structure and function of which will bedescribed in greater detail below. Although this handle arrangement hasparticular advantages, other handle configurations may prove useful forother or related applications.

The reservoir region comprises approximately one and one-half percent(1½%) of the total volume of the container. For example, in a thirtyfive (35) pound version of the container, the total fill capacity isapproximately one thousand sixty five cubic inches (1,065 in³) and theoverflow region capacity is approximately twenty additional cubic inches(20 in³), for a total of one thousand eighty four cubic inches (1,084in³). In the seventeen and one half (17½) pound version of thecontainer, the total fill capacity is approximately five hundred andthirty two cubic inches (532 in³) and the overflow region adds anadditional eight cubic inches (8 in³) of capacity for a total of fivehundred forty cubic inches (540 in³). The upper wall portion 54 b in theoverflow region defines the upper terminus of the container. That is, itdefines a stepped region above the planar portion 54 a of the uppersurface located beneath the spout. The overflow region providesincreased capacity that finds particular application when fluid, such ascooking oil, is introduced into the container at an elevatedtemperature. The fill line is represented by dotted line 62 (FIG. 2) andis just below the wall portion 54 a beneath the spout. Here, however,the overflow region provides additional air space. If a fluid is filledat an elevated temperature, for example 100° F., with time it will cooland the fill level will decrease. Previously, manufacturers could onlyfill to a level below the representative fill line 62 because of theabsence of any overflow region such as 60. That is, the fill level wassubstantially below the bottom of the spout, and then as it cooled overtime, the fluid level would be substantially below the upper surface ofthe container. This was necessary in situations where the fluid was alsoraised to an even higher temperature, for example during storage thetemperature in some environments can reach 110° F. or greater, resultingin increased pressure in the sealed container. The overflow regionaccommodates these conditions and allows increased volume or capacity offluid to be filled into each container of a certain height. By formingthe overflow region and the upper wall at substantially the same heightas the opening of the spout (i.e., above the planar portion 54 a, thefill level 62 can be increased to the adjacent bottom portion of thespout without filling all of the overflow region air space 60. Once thecap (not shown) is placed onto the container, the filled containerbecomes a sealed environment. For example, a cap incorporating a rubbergasket on the interior or underside surface of the cap provides animproved sealing arrangement. This is an improvement over theconventional foil type seal used in association with a lesser qualitycap that does not have the ability to withstand the internal pressuresencountered in some uses, such as with oil. Under increased temperaturethe prior art arrangements had a tendency to leak since part of themanufacturing cost was devoted to the purchase of a corrugated caserather than an improved cap-to-container seal. Here, eliminating thecases, and incorporating the overflow region and structural means tohandle the increased internal pressure, provides a highly usefulcontainer that addresses these concerns while also addressing costconcerns associated with material purchase and manufacture of thecontainer.

As is also apparent in FIG. 7, the container can be made in varioussizes. The seventeen and one half (17½) pound version shown in FIG. 7 issimply representative of one of a number of different sized containersthat can be used incorporating these concepts. Like numbers representlike elements and the features and benefits described above inassociation with the embodiment of FIGS. 2-6 are also provided here.

FIG. 8 illustrates a desired stacking array of the filled containers.The strengthening ribs allow the manufacturer/shipper to eliminate theuse of any external cases such as a corrugate case, and still canwithstand loading forces and internal pressure when sealed that match orexceed that of the prior art. By stacking the containers on their sideas illustrated in FIG. 8 in brick-like fashion, there are no longunbraced lengths. That is, the structural reinforcing ribs are able totransfer load from one upper layer to the next adjacent lower layer. Asnoted above, a higher quality, more expensive cap can be used in thisarrangement. Moreover, by stacking the containers on their sides, thevertical loads need not necessarily be transferred through the cap andspout.

The container can be filled to increased capacity, and provision is madefor filling with fluids at elevated temperatures, as well asencountering environments where the sealed container is exposed toelevated temperatures. The potential problems associated with acontainer that leaks are also substantially reduced since the structuralload bearing capability of the container is not impacted.

The invention has been described with reference to the preferredembodiments. Obviously, modifications and alterations will occur toothers upon a reading and understanding of this specification. It isintended that the invention be construed as including all suchmodifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope ofthe appended claims or the equivalents thereof.

1.-16. (canceled)
 17. A method of manufacturing a container having afill spout that terminates in an opening through which fluid isintroduced into and dispensed out of the container, the containerfinding particular application in storing fluid that is filled at anelevated temperature, the method comprising the steps of: providing aspout in the container through which fluid can be introduced anddispensed; locating an opening of the container below an overflow regionthat is located above a fill line of the container; introducing fluidinto the container at an elevated temperature; and closing the containerwhile the fluid is still at an elevated temperature.
 18. A method ofshipping oil in containers having structural strengthening featuresincorporated therein, the method comprising the steps of: fillingcontainers with oil at an elevated temperature; stacking the filledcontainers without the use of cases to minimize an unbraced length ofthe containers; and securing the filled containers without cases instacked array for shipping.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein thesecuring step includes wrapping the stacked containers in a plasticsheet.
 20. The method of claim 18 wherein the stacking step includesorienting the filled containers on their sides to minimize the unbracedheight of the containers.